Scientists create machines to live, eat and grow: TECH & INNOVATION: Science Times

A new biomaterial built in a Cornell University bioengineering laboratory uses synthetic DNA to organize, assemble and restructure itself autonomously and continuously, according to a process similar to the growth of cells and biological tissues, which researchers call "artificial metabolism". However, scientists are not ready to admit that they have created realistic machines. Scientists have done everything, but asserted outright that their metabolizing biomaterial is alive, but research has identified the characteristics of life that the material presents: self-assembly, organization and metabolism.

These man-made organic machines are capable of locomotion, consume energy resources, grow and decompose, and evolve. Finally, they die. As may seem very similar to life, Dan Luo, a professor of biological and environmental engineering at Cornell's Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, who has worked on research, says the opposite. "We are introducing a whole new concept of realistic material powered by its own artificial metabolism – we are not creating something alive, but we are creating much more realistic materials than ever before."

Scientists are not ready to pretend to have created life, but how realistic is this material? According to the research, they are on par with biologically complex organisms such as molds: "We report here an ascending construction of dynamic biomaterials fueled by an artificial metabolism, representing a combination of irreversible biosynthesis processes and dissipative assembly. Emergent Locomotion Behavior This viscous mold-like program has been programmed with this material using an abstract design model similar to that of mechanical systems.The extension of the program has resulted in a racing behavior Emerging in the race, other applications, including pathogen detection and hybrid nanomaterials, have allowed dynamic biomaterials fueled by artificial metabolism to be an unexplored pathway for systems realization. biological "artificial" with regenerated characteristics ration and self-sufficiency ".

The Cornell team essentially developed their own robots using a DNA-based biomaterial, observed them metabolizing energy resources, observed their degradation and growth, and then programmed them to race. We would have forced them to participate in a karaoke competition, but Cornell's candidacy is also impressive. As incredible as it may seem, the team is just beginning. The main author of the team's document, Shogo Hamada, said that "in the long run, the system could give birth to reproducible and realistic machines."

This work is still in its infancy, but the implications of self-replicating organic breeding machines are incredible. And the debate over whether robots can be "alive" will probably have a new chapter to discuss soon.